Good Recruitment for Older Workers - The current and future recruitment landscape - Centre for Ageing Better
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Good The current and
future recruitment
Recruitment
landscape
Megan Edwards
Beth Mason
for Older
Zofia Bajorek
Jenny Holmes
Dan Lucy
Workers
ageing-better.org.uk
In partnership with:About us
Centre for Ageing Better
The UK’s population is undergoing a massive age shift. In less than 20 years,
one in four people will be over 65.
The fact that many of us are living longer is a great achievement. But unless
radical action is taken by government, business and others in society, millions
of us risk missing out on enjoying those extra years.
At the Centre for Ageing Better we want everyone to enjoy later life. We create
change in policy and practice informed by evidence and work with partners
across England to improve employment, housing, health and communities.
We are a charitable foundation, funded by The National Lottery Community
Fund, and part of the government’s What Works Network.
Institute for Employment Studies
IES is an independent, apolitical, international centre of research and
consultancy in public employment policy and HR management. It works
closely with employers in all sectors, government departments, agencies,
professional bodies and associations. IES is a focus of knowledge and practical
experience in employment and training policy, the operation of labour markets,
and HR planning and development. IES is a not-for-profit organisation.
Acknowledgements
The authors are indebted to the research participants who kindly gave their
time to inform us about their recruitment practices and approaches to support
the recruitment of older workers and provide us with rich insights. We are also
grateful to Amy McSweeney, Luke Price, Patrick Thomson and Emma Twyning
for their thoughtful review of the research tools, and insight during analysis
and reporting.
2 Good Recruitment for Older WorkersContents
Executive summary 4
1 Introduction 7
1.1 Background 7
1.2 Research context 8
1.3 Research aims 9
1.4 Method 10
2 Common recruitment approaches 12
2.1 Pre-interview stage 12
2.2 The Interview stage 22
2.3 Post-interview stage 27
2.4 Age-friendly recruitment approaches 28
2.5 Measuring the effectiveness of the recruitment process 30
2.6 Recruitment process alignment with wider organisational strategy 31
2.7 Factors influencing the choice of recruitment methods 34
2.8 Findings from employer cognitive interviews 35
3 Inclusive Recruitment Methods 39
3.1 Recruitment approaches addressing diversity and inclusion 39
and their effectiveness
3.2 Summary of the literature review 44
4 Future trends in recruitment 46
4.1 Developing an employer brand to attract candidates 46
4.2 Creating a positive candidate experience improves 47
the recruitment process
4.3 Technology and analytics are set to transform recruitment 48
4.4 Employers are thinking about their future workforce needs 50
5 Conclusions 52
5.1 The current recruitment landscape for older workers 52
5.2 Employers’ approach to diversity and inclusion 56
5.3 The impact of Covid-19 on future trends 57
6 References 58
Centre for Ageing Better 3Executive summary
Executive summary
Although the proportion of people aged 50 and over in the workforce has
steadily increased over the past three decades, many older workers are not
able to find the fulling work that they desire. When seeking a new role, age
discrimination may be a significant barrier for older workers, as age is the
least scrutinised and most widely accepted form of discrimination in the UK
(Abrams, Swift and Houston, 2018). To better understand how to support good
recruitment for older workers, the Centre for Ageing Better (Ageing Better) has
commissioned this research to explore the current recruitment landscape in the
UK in the context of older workers. This research explores employers’ current
recruitment practices and approaches to addressing diversity and inclusion,
specifically age, in recruitment. The method consisted of a rapid evidence review
of grey and academic literature, a secondary data analysis of existing surveys of
HR and recruitment professionals and interviews with recruitment, inclusion and
diversity and Human Resource (HR) professionals from a range of industries.
Several global events shaped the wider context of this research. In March 2020,
the Covid-19 pandemic forced the UK into lockdown, causing many industries to
temporarily cease operating. The impact of Covid-19 presented several issues for
this research: difficulty in securing interviews with recruitment and HR professionals
in the desired industries; and a substantial shift in the current recruitment landscape
as employers adapted to new virtual working practices. Additionally, the Black
Lives Matter movement came to the forefront of international media attention
and it is likely that, to some extent, this shaped the content of our interviews,
increasing their focus on racial and ethnic diversity in the workplace.
The findings suggest that the employers in this sample generally followed a
comparable recruitment process involving similar types of activities, which
included creating a job description, advertising and shortlisting, multiple
interviews and skills testing, with some variations in the implementation of
specific recruitment methods. The sector and size of an organisation appeared
to influence the process, over and above industry. Public sector and larger
organisations tended to have organisational strategies, centralised processes
and guidance and tools that they could draw upon, resulting in a more
structured recruitment process that integrated practices aimed to improve
some elements of diversity (most commonly gender, ethnicity and disability).
4 Good Recruitment for Older WorkersExecutive summary
Age was not seen as a priority diversity issue by the employers involved
in this research. This was due to most employers believing they are already
diverse in relation to age and therefore did not have a ‘age problem’ requiring
action. A small number of employers analysed workforce age data to guide
and justify this decision making, however others suggested they could tell their
organisation was age diverse by simply ‘looking around the organisation’. On the
whole, employers did not analyse the age data of their workforce or candidates
to support organisational prioritisation and decision making. In contrast, gender
and ethnicity were most often cited by organisations as areas of diversity that
needed immediate action and were more commonly measured and analysed.
Therefore, most employers did not report implementing any specific age-friendly
practices to support the recruitment of older workers. In a small number of
employers who had considered age, it was the lack of younger workers that they
believed was problematic. Some employers suggested there would have to be a
‘specific problem’, such as an age discrimination claim, to be motivated to act on
the age agenda. When probed on age, employers tended not to think about age
and HR practices in a binary way e.g. implementing different practices for older
worker compared to younger workers. Instead, they conceptualised age as a
spectrum where their recruitment activities can be applied to and benefit, people
of all ages e.g. graduate recruitment is not just designed for those under 25.
From analysing the recruitment practices described by the employers
involved in this research, several areas of risk threatening the inclusivity
of the recruitment process for older workers were identified:
– Lack of diversity strategies within an organisation, or the exclusion of age
as a core element of a strategy.
– Job descriptions that are not assessed for ageist language or include criteria
that excludes older workers, such as particular qualifications or experience.
– Presence of age-related stereotypes and negative perceptions, such as older
workers being less ‘presentable’, less physically fit, or having poor IT skills in
comparison to younger workers.
– Poor use of age data; assumptions about the extent to which age diversity
is an issue within an organisation are often made without critical analysis
workforce or recruitment data.
Centre for Ageing Better 5Executive summary
Other risk factors that threatening the inclusivity of the recruitment process
more widely, not just in relation to older workers, were also identified:
– An emphasis on assessing the ‘cultural fit’ of a candidate, typically using
subjective and unstructured approaches that are liable to age bias.
– Use of unstructured interviews where interviewers do not use the same
questions for all candidates, or only one interviewer is present. This can result
in candidates being assessed on different criteria and individual bias entering
the recruitment process.
– Gathering of subjective feedback – the collection of ‘informal’ feedback
from a wider team or the non-standardised evaluation of candidate
performance increases the likelihood of biased views related to age.
– Individual decision-makers can often have the final say on a recruitment
decision, without much consideration given to the potential attitudes and
biases held by that person.
Overall, most employers from this sample did not report implementing any
age-specific recruitment practices to support older workers. The literature
however, although sparse, provided some evidence of recruitment practices
that may be effective in reducing old age bias:
– Using a wide range of advertising methods that specifically target older
workers, such as using imagery of older workers on advertising collateral
and using a range of advertising channels more relevant to older workers,
thus increasing the likelihood of an age-diverse longlist.
– Using application methods that reduce the likelihood of capturing explicit
and implicit age cues. For example, explicitly stating that candidate’s age or
date birth are removed from CVs and only accepting application forms that
ask job-relevant questions.
– Considering the attitudes and overall influence of the decision maker –
ensuring that decision-makers do not hold ageist attitudes and consider
multiple decision makers to reduce the undue influence of individuals.
One way this could be addressed is by taking an organisational approach to
create an inclusive culture that challenges negative attitudes and celebrates
the contribution of workers of all ages (Fasbender and Wang, 2017).
6 Good Recruitment for Older WorkersIntroduction
1 Introduction
1.1 Background
UK employers currently have compelling reasons to hire and retain older workers.
The age profile of the UK’s population is continuing to increase, with people aged
50 and over now making up a third of the UK workforce compared to just one-fifth
in the early 1990s (ONS, 2018). Changes in pension provision, with the removal
of the default retirement age1 and the raising of the state pension age, coupled
with an increase in life expectancy (ONS, 2019) and less generous employer
benefits, will result in people needing to remain in the workplace longer.
Employers are facing a skills shortage as a large generation of those born in
the 1950-60s start to retire and the skills desirable in the UK labour market shift
toward automation and digitalisation (The Edge Foundation, 2020); the current
labour market is lacking the basic skills that employers seek. The combination
of these factors suggests that longer working lives are not only inevitable, but
can offer benefits to the individual, employers and society more widely. Despite
this, just one in five employers report discussing age strategically and a quarter
feel they are unprepared for the demographic shift in their workforce2.
Many older workers are leaving the labour market before they want to, often
due to being unable to find suitable work as they get older. The employment
rate currently falls by 8 percentage points for 50 year olds, to 56% for 60 year
olds and 24% for 65 year olds (Department for Work and Pensions, 2020).
Older workers bring a wealth of skills and experience to the labour market
that employers are currently failing to take advantage of.
To increase participation in the labour market of people aged between 50-69,
Ageing Better identified five age-friendly practices to attract and retain older
workers (Centre for Ageing Better, 2018). A core component is reducing age
bias in recruitment. While it is difficult to estimate prevalence of age bias in
recruitment, data suggests that one third of people aged 50 and over in the UK
believe they have been turned down for a job because of their age and two-fifths
think their age would disadvantage them when applying for a job3. Discrimination
against older workers remains a significant problem and legislation alone has not
been sufficient to eliminate age discrimination in recruitment.
1
However, in some cases employers can introduce a ‘compulsory retirement age’ if they have a valid reason
e.g. the role requires specific physical capabilities.
2
www.ageing-better.org.uk/sites/default/files/2018-09/Becoming-age-friendly-employer.pdf
3
See: www.ageing-better.org.uk/sites/default/files/2018-09/Age-friendly-employers-stats.pdf
Centre for Ageing Better 7Introduction
In some sectors younger male applicants are 3.6 times more likely than an
older males to be invited to a job interview than an older male applicant, and
in office jobs, restaurant vacancies and shop roles, young female applicants
were 5.3 times more likely than older job applicants to receive a job interview
(Drydakis et al, 2017). Moreover, ageism may be further exacerbated when
an individual is also from a minority ethnic background. Evidence shows older
Black-British applicants are 9.4 times less likely to be invited to an interview,
compared to an older White-British applicant and are invited to interviews at
firms offering 5.8 times lower salaries compared to the salaries of firms that
White-British applicants are invited to attend (Drydakis et al, 2018).
Alongside factors such as geographical mobility, job commitment and existing
progression, the experience of discrimination when applying for new jobs could
be contributing to the lower job-to-job mobility rates observed in older workers
compared to their younger counterparts. Only 0.31% of people aged 50 and over
voluntarily moved job roles in March 2020, compared to 1.31% of 18-29 year olds4.
Job mobility is a route to better quality work and career progression (D’Arcy and
Finch, 2017). Therefore the inability to progress due to factors outside of an older
worker’s control is likely to lead to decreased job satisfaction and poorer quality of life.
To better understand how to support good recruitment for older workers,
Ageing Better has commissioned three projects exploring how to reduce
age bias in recruitment. This research focusses on widely varying employer
recruitment practices. There are also different recruitment and selection stages
where bias can materialise. Developing support for employers requires a full
understanding of their current practices, their approach to diversity and age,
the barriers they face and an understanding of future trends.
1.2 Research context
At the time this research commenced, several significant events were happening
across the UK and the rest of the world. In March 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic
forced the UK into lockdown, causing many industries to temporarily cease
operating. Hospitality, retail, tourism and construction were among those
where all but essential operations had to stop. The immediate impact of
Covid-19 has presented several issues for this current research. These included:
difficulty in securing interviews with recruitment and HR professionals in the
desired industries and a substantial shift in the current recruitment landscape
as employers adapted to new virtual working practices. The data and associated
media narrative of the negative impact of Covid-19 on younger people may also
have influenced the interviewee’s perception and prioritisation of the current
need for age-friendly practices or interventions to target older workers.
4
See: www.resolutionfoundation.org/data/job-to-job-moves/
8 Good Recruitment for Older WorkersIntroduction
At the beginning of lockdown, the number of job vacancies posted online
halved (decreasing by 51 percentage points) compared to pre-crisis levels
(Papoutsaki et al, 2020); numbers only very modestly increased over the two
month period and after the easing of lockdown restrictions (Papoutsaki and
Williams, 2020). Over the course of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme
(CJRS), 1.2 million employers furloughed 9.6 million jobs5. Those in employment
fell by at least a million, with immediate job losses most severely affecting the
youngest (16-24 year olds) and oldest workers (people aged 65 and over)
(Institute for Employment Studies, 2020).
Recent research by the Centre for Ageing Better (Centre for Ageing Better,
2020a) has indicated that the pandemic could reverse the significant gains
made in recent years in employment levels for older workers. The proportion
of older workers seeking unemployment benefits during lockdown doubled and
unemployment rates are likely to increase further as the furlough scheme ends.
Some sectors with a significant number of older workers, which have been
disproportionately affected by lockdown, may struggle to recover. This may
particularly impact older women who are more likely to work in effected sectors,
especially retail (Gable et al, 2020). Additionally, the lockdown has increased
worries about people’s finances, with almost half of people in their fifties and
sixties believe their finances will worsen in the year ahead. Nearly seven in ten
(68%) of those who are currently workless do not feel confident that that they
will be employed in the future (Centre for Ageing Better, 2020b).
In addition to Covid-19, the murder of George Floyd in the USA6 and subsequent
global protests once again brought the Black Lives Matter movement to the
forefront of international media attention. It is likely that this context shaped the
content of our interviews with HR professionals to some extent, increasing their
focus on racial and ethnic diversity in the workplace.
1.3 Research aims
To better understand how to support good recruitment for older workers, this
research aims to understand the current and future recruitment practices and
employer approaches to diversity and inclusion, in the context of bias against
older workers. The specific research questions are:
What are the most common recruitment approaches?
– How do these differ by industry, occupation and seniority?
– What are the future trends in recruitment?
5
See; www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmrc-coronavirus-covid-19-statistics
6
See; www.bbc.co.uk/news/topics/cv7wlylxzg1t/george-floyd-death
Centre for Ageing Better 9Introduction
How do recruiters and employer think about and act on bias, particularly age bias?
– To what extent do effective age-inclusive approaches exist?
How do HR professionals approach recruitment and the diversification
of recruitment?
– Who do organisations/recruiters look to for guidance?
– Why do they choose certain approaches?
1.4 Method
The method consisted of a rapid evidence review and interviews to answer
the above research questions. The rapid evidence review included:
– Secondary data analysis of existing surveys of HR and recruitment
professionals. In total, 16 surveys were initially reviewed, resulting in the
inclusion of nine in the final report. Data sources were evaluated based
on the sample size and characteristics (i.e. range in sectors and organisation
size), research methodology, inclusion of UK specific data and relevance
of the findings in relation to the research questions.
– A review of 31 pieces of grey and academic literature, resulting in the inclusion
of 17 articles in the final review. Searches were conducted across three meta-
databases (PsychInfo, Business Source Premier, Scopus and Google Scholar)
using a search strategy. To supplement the academic literature, evidence from
think tanks, HR Bodies and recruitment bodies was also reviewed.
The qualitative interviews provided both depth and breadth of understanding.
The interviews consisted of:
– Five interviews with recruitment and diversity specialists.
– Twenty interviews with HR or recruitment professionals. The sampling strategy
aimed to target four types of sectors: sectors with a higher proportion of older
workers, sectors with a lower proportion of older workers, sectors where job
sustainability declines with age and sectors with potential for greater Brexit
impact. The final sample included interviewees from a diverse range of employers:
- The sample was predominantly female and aged between 25-57 years old7.
- The majority of interviewees worked in the private sector in industries including:
manufacturing, financial services, hospitality, technology, and healthcare.
7
This gender spit is representative of the HR profession. As of 2017, CIPD reported that 79% of its
membership were women. See: www.peoplemanagement.co.uk/long-reads/articles/hr-gender-challenge
10 Good Recruitment for Older WorkersIntroduction
- Organisations ranged in size including micro (less than 10 employees) and
small organisations (10-49 employees), but more than half the interviews
were conducted with interviewees from large organisations (250+ employees).
– Four cognitive interviews with employers using a ‘think aloud’ approach
to explore their recruitment process in more detail. This method is used to
understand an individual’s thought processes about a subject without directly
asking about it. Using this technique allows the interviewee to control the
narrative, enabling enables the researchers to gain an organic insight into
how participants think about diversity and inclusion.
- Interviewees were presented with each of the elements of the recruitment
process (employer branding, job description, candidate attraction, sourcing,
applications, interview, assessment tools, skills tests, final selection, contract
package) alongside three prompts to guide their narrative: ‘Describe the
process’, ‘How is inclusivity facilitated?’ and ‘How could this be improved?’.
- The interviewer did not speak or prompt during the exercise, rather
interviewees were asked to speak continuously and voice all the
thoughts they had and refer to the written prompts to guide them.
- This method elicits information about an individual’s views without direct
questioning and enables researchers to see if the interviewee naturally
considers age bias.
- Employer interviewees included a small manufacturing business, a large
financial services firm, a large technology-travel employer and a small
healthcare organisation.
While the findings demonstrate the range of approaches across several
industries, they were not intended to be representative or generalisable to all
employers, or to be indicative of the scale of employer activity on this agenda.
Centre for Ageing Better 11Common recruitment approaches
2 Common
recruitment approaches
This chapter details the common recruitment practices in the UK and the
potential impact on older workers, based on evidence from the secondary
survey data and the primary employer interviews. The analysis is grouped into
three main phases: pre-interview, interview and post-interview. Similarities and
differences in recruitment approaches by industry, occupation or seniority are
explored throughout the chapter.
2.1 Pre-interview stage
2.1.1 Annual planning and identifying a need
Interviewees from several organisations described a process of annual planning
to assess the recruitment need and budget for the upcoming year, which was
most commonly reported by those working in public sector organisations. In
the absence of annual planning, the recruitment process typically begins when
a hiring manager identifies a need within their team. If it is a new role, it often
goes through an approval process, outlining the business case to the senior
team or HR. A business case may include information such as: the justification
to recruit, whether it is financially feasible and any alternative options (e.g.
dividing responsibilities across existing roles in the organisation). In larger
organisations approval will often require a formal document to be completed.
For role replacements or very junior roles, interviewees in non-public sector
organisations suggested that the business case step can sometimes be omitted.
A process of annual planning enables organisations to assess their future recruitment
needs and align the recruitment approach to a wider organisational and/or
diversity strategy. A lack of forward planning can present several risks to diversity:
– Employers are likely to resort to similar methods they have used previously,
resulting in the stagnation of the recruitment process. If these methods are
not already age friendly, the hiring of older workers is likely to suffer.
– Use of quick and reactive methods – an unplanned and urgent recruitment
need may lead to ‘shortcuts’ being taken in the recruitment process. A less
structured approach can be detrimental to diversity and inclusion and will
likely have a detrimental impact of the older candidates (Wolgast, Bäckström
and Björklund, 2017).
12 Good Recruitment for Older WorkersCommon recruitment approaches
2.1.2 Creating a job description and advert
A job description (JD) outlines the main responsibilities and capabilities required
for a role and is typically created by the hiring manager in collaboration with HR
(or a recruitment/business partner in some larger organisations). A job description
is typically created after undertaking a ‘job analysis’ to determine the responsibilities
and tasks the role will involve and the specifications and experience of the desired
candidate, as well as factors such as the number of vacancies, seniority of position
and length of contract. The job analysis process can vary, but interviewees typically
had a formal meeting involving the hiring manager and HR to understand the core
components of the role. Along with a description of the role, core responsibilities
and the desired person specification, a JD will sometimes include information
about the company’s values and culture. The JD is the foundation of all future
recruitment activities in terms of advertising, shortlisting, interviewing and selection.
When detailing the person specification, content will typically include requirements
around knowledge, skills, behaviours, qualifications and experience. However,
some employers are trying to move away from defining the ‘experience’
candidates require, instead focusing on capabilities that will allow people to
succeed in the role. Considering capability over experience is an approach that
some employers are taking to increase the potential pool of candidates and to
attract talent with a range of backgrounds, rather than specifying a static set of
requirements, which some groups may be less likely to fulfil. In the public sector,
the use of the ‘Success Profile Framework’ to design (and assess against) a role
facilitates a capability first approach. This means for each role advertised,
employers consider what candidates need to demonstrate to be successful.
A capability, or potential, first approach could be an effective way for employers
to increase diversity, particularly in relation to older workers. Removing barriers
related to qualifications or degrees that older workers are less likely hold or relaxing
the need for specific work experience (e.g. in particular industries that employ
lower proportions of older workers). However, one public sector interviewee
thought that the removal of specifying the minimum number of years’ experience
required could adversely impact older workers, where typically they could gain
an advantage, due to the experience gained from ‘previous careers’:
“ We have a large older workforce and often get people in their second
careers. Might have been working in [related practical fields], and then
transition to [the employer], setting standards and assessing rather than
being hands on.” Large employer, Public sector
The use and impact of the language and content of job descriptions was
considered by several employers, particularly in relation to gender. Several
interviewees discussed the negative impact on the attraction of women to
job description and adverts that use ‘masculine’ themed content, such as
Centre for Ageing Better 13Common recruitment approaches
‘determined’, ‘competitive’ or ‘ambitious’. In some cases, organisations used online
tools (such as Textio) to ‘decode’ gendered language in job adverts. However, the
same consideration was not given to use of ‘ageist’ language. Although potentially
‘age unfriendly’ language can appear in a person specification (e.g. ‘ambitious’ or
‘digital native’) and in how a company chooses to represent itself, (e.g. ‘frequent
nights out’ or ‘we work hard, play hard’) interviewees did not identify this as an
issue. This has a considerable impact on the inclusiveness of job descriptions and
adverts for older workers and it likely to lead to older workers self-selecting out
of the recruitment process, or being evaluated against unfair criteria.
“ A lot of this [improving diversity] is in the wording – very strict on wording –
careful about him/her pronouns. Making sure each piece is completely
neutral, not biased, Focus is to encourage people with the right talent.
Not based on their characteristics.” Large employer, Public sector
In some industries, such as manufacturing and construction, physical fitness
is a core requirement for the job and so is stated on the job description as
an essential requirement. For example, candidates in one manufacturing
organisation are required to have 40kg upper arm strength. At interview stage,
candidates can be asked to undertake a physical assessment or a trial task that
will demonstrate physical capability.
Interviewees in smaller organisations described that roles are sometimes less
well defined and often contain a wider range of responsibilities that may be more
typically managed by more than one member of staff in a larger organisation.
Less well-defined job roles are potentially detrimental for older workers as an
excessive need for multitasking in a role may not align with negative stereotypes
individuals hold about older workers’ inability to work quickly or under pressure.
2.1.3 Candidate attraction and employer brand
Employer branding is used to attract candidates to an organisation by focusing
on their reputation and sharing their values. Employer interviewees considered
their employer brand at the beginning of the recruitment process because they
believe it works to initially draw talent to your organisation. Analysis of the secondary
data suggested that employers found social or professional networks and their
own career website the most effective channels for growing their employer
brand (Jobvite, 2015). The secondary data also showed that in the past two
years, employers reported taking several steps to improve their brand, including:
– Developing their corporate website.
– Improving the candidate experience (but without much detail as to what this
means in practice).
14 Good Recruitment for Older WorkersCommon recruitment approaches
– Attended careers fairs or networking events.
– Made pay and benefits more competitive.
– Made changes to their value proposition to improve their reputation
(but without much detail as to what this means in practice).
– Monitored feedback received through other websites.
– Taken steps to measure the impact of their employer brand.
– Increased the activities that benefit the wider community and society
(CIPD and Hays, 2017).
The primary motive for employers to focus on their brand is to attract candidates
to their organisation. However, the secondary data showed HR professionals
perceived some elements of branding as more important than others. Articulating
organisational values, career development opportunities, pay and benefits, and
working practices (e.g. flexible working) were amongst the elements rated most
important by HR professionals in one survey (CIPD and Hays, 2017). Whereas
respondents reported that employee communications and involvement, corporate
social responsibility agenda, use of technology and a diversity and inclusion
agenda were the least important brand elements for attracting candidates.
The degree of importance did vary slightly by sector. Values were perceived
as more important in not-for-profit organisations, compared to the public and
private sector, while career development was less important in not-for-profit
compared to the public and private sectors. Corporate social responsibility
was slightly more important within the not-for-profit sector, and a diversity
and inclusion agenda slightly more important in public sector organisations
(CIPD and Hays, 2017).
Interviewees from technology and public sector employers were more likely
to discuss employer branding. Creating a strong and attractive brand was
considered to make the organisation a more desirable place to work and
therefore increase their talent pool. However, the type of brand an organisation
chooses to portray can have an impact on the types of people who will choose
to apply for an organisation. Some interviewees had considered this impact of
brand on hiring outcomes. For example, a public sector organisation discussed
using different imagery aimed at increasing the hiring of older workers due to
the ‘life experience’ they can bring to the organisation:
Centre for Ageing Better 15Common recruitment approaches
“ In our imagery, we try to use more mature people. For our degree-holder
programme, we are getting more people in their 40s. There is a slight shift
and the rebranding include [specific job role] to get more mature applicants
[for that role specifically]… [We] have metrics to monitor but have to ask
for them, could commission age-related data but it’s not a focus.”
Large employer, Public sector
Some organisations, either knowingly or unknowingly, may be building a brand
that is unattractive or exclusionary to older workers. Organisational values, job
descriptions, employee benefits, the working environment, social activities and
flexible working arrangements all contribute to the image of an employer. If these
factors are explicitly, or implicitly, aimed towards a certain demographic (such as
younger workers), employers are likely to have more difficulty attracting certain
demographic groups, like older workers.
“ When I was in [a recruitment] agency you were told that you didn’t want
people who were old working in young tech companies. Clients we worked
with wouldn’t say it directly but would say things like “graduated in the last
6 years”. Large employer, technology
One employer discussed the need for branding to reflect the businesses views,
values, approach and culture, and to test where the branding is landing. For
example, to evaluate if the channels the organisation is using are diverse and if
they are reaching a broad range of people.
“ It is difficult to make it [branding] inclusive as it has to reflect what the
business is doing so if the business is really inclusive then their brand
will be too.” Large employer, Financial services
Offering flexible working was also identified by some interviewees as a way of
attracting candidates and increasing the diversity of applicants. This finding was
supported by the secondary data analysis, which suggests that work-life balance
and flexible working arrangements are highly valued by candidates:
“ Advertising all jobs as available flexibly has made a big difference in bringing
in a more diverse applicant pool. It was work to get managers on board but
now they are seeing how working flexibly can work. This is an easy win-win
and a benefit to lots of disadvantaged groups, it covers many diversity
strands.” Large employer, Education
16 Good Recruitment for Older WorkersCommon recruitment approaches
Interviewees reported that brand can be built and maintained via the
communications it publishes about itself, but also external employee led
platforms such as Glassdoor, which can be helpful to increase positive brand
awareness. While tracking the impact these efforts have on building positive
brand image is difficult, employers do track the source that job applications
that originate, including from platforms like Glassdoor.
“ We have great reviews on Glassdoor and always reply to every single person
who applies. It’s really important to us that the candidate journey is a great
experience, regardless of the outcome.” Large employer, Health
In addition to a positive employer brand, secondary data analysis showed that
employers used a range of other methods to attract candidates to apply to their
organisation. Posting content on social media and their organisation’s website
are the attraction methods used most often on a daily, weekly and monthly basis
(Eploy, 2019). LinkedIn and Facebook are typically the sites used by employers
for attracting candidates (XpertHR, 2019). Interviewees discussed typically
posting adverts on the own website and job boards, as well as social media
platforms, with LinkedIn being commonly mentioned. Many interviewees would
track the effectiveness of each platform and use the data to influence advertising
decisions. Attending events, jobs fairs, or open days is the most common method
used ‘occasionally’ and video was the method that most employers reported
they were planning to use in the future (Eploy, 2019).
However, it is important to emphasise that in order for the benefits of
branding and attraction to translate to positive employment outcomes,
the sold experience needs to match the reality of the job role. Realistic Job
Previews (RJP) are presentations of both positive and negative aspects of a
position and organisation to provide a candidate a realistic view of the job role.
They have been shown to have a positive effect on intention to proceed with
an application, job satisfaction, organisational commitment, turnover and
performance, which emphasises the need for truthful branding (Earnest, 2011;
Ward, 2016). Interviewees reported using variations of RJPs to demonstrate the
elements of a job role and to assess potential capability in a role. For example,
the use of trial shifts in the hospitality industry. Applicants also have access to
informal RJPs via websites, such as Indeed and Glassdoor, that hold testimonials
from previous employees and applicants about their experiences. Using
techniques such as RJP could benefit older workers by providing them an
opportunity to demonstrate their capability to fulfil a role; as long as the
candidate is evaluated fairly against a predefined set of job-relevant criteria.
However, it also provides more opportunity for employers to make biased
judgements based on personal characteristics.
Centre for Ageing Better 17Common recruitment approaches
2.1.4 Candidate sourcing and advertising
Looking internally
Interviewees from the public sector were more likely to report utilising internal
recruitment methods. Interviewees from other industries described how they make
an assumption that they do not have the required skill set internally and therefore
move straight to external advertisement. This can be a barrier for employees who
are trying to change roles internally, but particularly for older workers, who also
suffer from negative stereotypes about not possessing certain skillsets. In some
industries, such as technology, interviewees thought that ‘refer a friend’ schemes
were ‘very successful’ for candidate sourcing. Word of mouth and personal
recommendation were found to be the most popular recruitment methods used
in a sample of over 80,000 employers, with 71% using this approach in 2019
(Department for Education, 2020). However, some interviewees from public sector
organisations reported not using such as approach due to budgetary restrictions.
However, looking internally for recruitment needs can also present a barrier
to diversity. While internal recruitment is a way of developing an internal
talent pipeline, it can hinder diversity and inclusion if the organisation’s existing
demographics are not diverse. Therefore, there is sometimes a need to recruit
externally to achieve diversity targets. Similarly, ‘refer a friend’ schemes can also
be detrimental to diversity if not managed effectively, as employees are likely to
surround themselves with (Montoya, Horton and Kirchner, 2008) and therefore
recommend, people who are similar to themselves. If an organisation already
has a low proportion of older workers, these schemes are unlikely to support
the hiring of older people.
In-house versus outsourced recruitment
According to the secondary data analysis, most employers reported using
either in-house recruitment, or a combination of in-house and outsourced
methods (CIPD and Hays, 2017). Who was responsible for recruitment also
varied by size of the organisation. In small businesses (up to 250 employees),
sourcing candidates for vacancies usually fell to a HR generalist or business
partner, dedicated recruiter, or talent acquisition specialist (Eploy, 2019). Hiring
managers were most commonly responsible in organisations with 251-1000
employees and recruitment agencies were most relied upon by organisations
with between 1001-5000 employees. However, the majority of organisations
with over 1001 employees reported having a dedicated recruiter or talent
acquisition specialist who was responsible for sourcing.
Interviewees tended to report that outsourced recruitment is particularly
expensive and reduces the control the employer has over the process.
If an organisation is trying to improve diversity and has specific interventions
in place, using an external recruiter could threaten its success. Smaller
organisations tended to report outsourcing more often because they do
not have resource or expertise in-house. Niche and senior level roles were
more likely to be sourced using external recruiters:
18 Good Recruitment for Older WorkersCommon recruitment approaches
“ For senior recruitment, we use executive search firms who may use different
methods [to their internal recruitment methods]. In our protocol, they have
to return 30% female candidates or provide an explanation as to why this
wasn’t possible. This needs more work for greater diversity and would like
to get the gender balance to 50%. Recruitment keeps an eye on this target.”
Large employer, Education
Targeting older applicants
Research has examined factors that influence an organisation’s decision to
target older workers. Organisations that value and understand the importance
of diversity and know the average age of applicants were positively associated
with the recruitment of older workers. Targeting older applicants was also
associated with the number of recruitment sources used – employers who
particularly target older workers used more diverse recruitment pools to select
candidates. The research highlighted that efforts aimed at targeting recruitment
to specific groups are likely to be more effective when inclusiveness towards
all groups is displayed (Goldberg et al, 2013).
Advertising
The secondary data showed that the most common channels used for
recruitment are online job adverts using a company career website (90%),
or general job boards (85%), social media (85%; primarily LinkedIn (93%),
Facebook (62%) and Twitter (44%) and internal applications (78%); (XpertHR,
20198). There are some differences between the channels used by internal and
external recruiters. In-house recruiters relied mainly on their website, professional
social media and employee referrals (Eploy, 2019). Whereas agencies also
reported using existing talent pools, CV databases and non-professional social
media. Attending events, job fairs and open days were also common, but print
media and pay-per-click advertising were rarely used (Eploy, 2019).
Evidence from interviews suggests that Indeed and LinkedIn are commonly used
job boards. However, in some technology employers, LinkedIn is considered
‘outdated’ – with interviewees opting to use the platforms that are more relevant
to their potential candidates, such as using GitHub to find technology specialists.
Interviewees from technology companies felt that LinkedIn did not produce the
calibre of candidates for specialist technology roles and believed this was because
highly skilled technologists no longer used LinkedIn due to being ‘hounded’ by
recruiters. Many interviewees discussed using advertising methods specific to
their industry for more targeted recruitment; for example, hospitality employers
posting adverts on catering websites. They believed that using a targeted
8
xPertHR 2019/20 survey had responses from 125 organisations. The majority of respondents were from private-
sector services (75%), then manufacturing and production (18%), and 6% from public sector. Organisation size
varied, most commonly respondents were from organisations with 1-249 employees (48%), while 29% came
from organisations with 250-999 employers and 23% from organisations with more than 1000 employees.
Centre for Ageing Better 19Common recruitment approaches
approach to advertisement would lead to more relevant and skilled applications;
this appeared to work to varying degrees. For example, an interviewee posting
job adverts on a specific healthcare website did not find it to be successful.
The secondary data analysis shows that not-for-profit and public sector
organisations felt that recruitment through an employer’s own website was
most effective (CIPD and Hays, 2017). Whereas private sector employers felt that
professional social media and job boards were the most effective channels and
recruitment consultants were most frequently endorsed by manufacturing and
production organisations. Speculative applications, referrals or those based on
word of mouth were perceived as more effective channels to source candidates
by individuals from private, not-for-profit and the manufacturing and production
sectors, compared to those in public sectors. It was not clear in the secondary
data if the respondents’ perceptions of effectiveness were based on objective
measures, or personal opinions on what they think works best.
The secondary data analysis also showed that the candidate sourcing methods
varied according to the seniority of the role. Recruitment agencies are commonly
used to fill senior manager/director, middle/junior manager and professional/
specialist roles (CIPD and Hays, 2017). Commercial job boards and the
organisation’s own website were regularly used to fill administrative/secretarial,
technical, services and manual/craft roles. Interviewees reaffirmed that recruitment
agencies are used occasionally, but this often depends on the role type. Senior and
more specialist roles will often go to agencies, as they tend to be more difficult
to fill. While in some of the technology companies, difficult roles are assigned
to an in-house ‘sourcer’, whose role is to proactively find candidates for the job.
‘Sourcers’ can use the technology platforms and networks that desired candidates
use (e.g. GitHub). A large technology employer was commonly recruiting for
niche or specialised roles, so recruiters had to ‘think outside of the box’ and use
targeted headhunting methods to identify candidates with the right skills. From
a business point of view, they often felt they had to prioritise skills over other
diversity and inclusion aims because the skills needed are in such high demand
that the recruitment process is often very time pressured – they perceived that
generating a diverse shortlist is more time intensive. The methods used - online
forums and websites such as Reddit and GitHub - could also be potentially
detrimental to diversity of candidates as these channels are not used by everyone.
2.1.5 Applications and shortlisting
The secondary data and interviews suggest that employers typically ask
for candidates to submit a CV and sometimes a cover letter, either via email
or an online application portal (XpertHR, 2019). Some organisations use external
Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) or have their own careers portal built into their
website. Some interviewees from public sector organisations reported using the
Civil Service job website for applications.
20 Good Recruitment for Older WorkersCommon recruitment approaches
Some interviewees described a process where HR or hiring managers do an initial
‘sift’ of CVs, assessing for job skills, experience and/or capability and organisational
‘fit’, to remove any unsuitable applications. To make the sifting process fair, some
public sector organisations reported using a diverse panel to assess the quality of
the applications:
“ Line Managers do the sift in a recruitment panel, typically of 3 people, which
must have gender diversity. This year, we are also asking for people with
BAME background or disability on panels. They must have attended training
(there is an eLearning module around bias). The panel sift individually and
then combine to get the shortlist.” Large Employer, Public Sector
Occasionally, HR will also conduct an initial ‘screening’ telephone interview.
‘Fit’ is considered very important by interviewees from all industries and is
typically evaluated by assessing if an applicant aligns with the ‘values and
culture’ of an organisation.
Employers evaluate fit in a variety of ways; some organisations will have a
framework that outlines the expected behaviours and competencies associated
with a specific organisational value, which they evaluate a candidate against.
Other organisations will take a less structured approach and assess fit from the
general ‘feel’ or content of an application and evaluate it against their own
interpretation of what type of person belongs’ in the organisation.
“ It wouldn’t be good to have someone who is clearly on a different
page as the person would probably just leave within 6-12 months.”
Large employer, technology
A less structured approach is more likely to be influenced by personal biases and
more likely to negatively impact certain groups of candidates that are not similar
to the current make-up of the organisation. This is detrimental for older workers
as it introduces more opportunities for biased views and decision, particularly if
an organisation has a younger age profile.
After an initial shift, CVs are passed to the hiring manager for further shortlisting.
In some cases, the ATS anonymises applications on submission, while in other
organisations HR will remove demographic details before hiring managers
shortlist the applications. In one organisation, ‘blind’ CVs are designed to reduce
the bias associated with knowing any personal characteristics of the candidate.
The extent to which ‘blinding’ is implemented varies across organisation and by
roles. For example, the success profile approach used in the civil service aims to
ask questions to assess potential in the role, rather than previous work experience
Centre for Ageing Better 21Common recruitment approaches
history, or personal attributes. Other employers may simply ask for a traditional
CV format, but with the personal data removed. In one organisation, the extent
to which applications are blinded varied by role. Applications for graduate roles
were blind because the applications were taken through a different channel that
used software to remove the personal information; however more senior roles
asked for CV applications and it was considered too time consuming to blind
them in-house. The interviewee also felt that hiring managers want to know
the full background of the candidate for these roles.
Simply removing demographic details still leaves many other cues on a CV,
although the interviewees did not identify this as an issue. For example, assumptions
can be made about the age of a person based on their name, work experience
history, career breaks, types of qualifications and hobbies. For organisations who
wish to develop a more age balanced workforce, simply removing age and date
of birth from CVs will not go far enough to tackle to potential bias.
Concealing age-related information
Evidence from the literature provides insight into the effectiveness of removing
age-specific information from CVs to improve hiring outcomes for older workers.
Derous and Decoster (2017) found that applicant CVs that included more implicit
cues referring to old age (such as their name or hobbies) were seen as less
suitable for the role, even when more explicit age cues (e.g. date of birth) were
absent. Zabinoni et al (2019) examined how explicit and implicit age stereotypes
on CVs affected hiring outcomes. The results found more negative explicit age
stereotypes towards older than younger workers. Younger applicants were seen
more positively on measures related to selection and recruitment. The results
indicate that, regardless of removing explicit age information, traditional CV
applications contain implicit age cues that continue to disadvantage older
workers. However, the removal of all age-related information could be difficult
as common recruitment questions, such as detailing employment history, allow
age to be inferred. To mitigate these effects, application processes that reduce
implicit cues, such as standardised application forms should be considered.
2.2 The Interview stage
The secondary data suggests that (prior to Covid-19) most employers used a
face-to-face interview as part of the assessment process, however telephone
interviews are also common, particularly within the private sector (CIPD and
Hays, 2017). Video interviews are less common (taken from data gathered prior
to Covid-19) but tended to be used more often within the private sector and
manufacturing and production, compared to other sectors. Interviews were
usually based on a defined set of competencies (78%) or followed the contents
22 Good Recruitment for Older WorkersCommon recruitment approaches
of the candidate’s CV or application form (74%; CIPD and Hays, 20179).
The benefits of structured interviews for improving diversity are discussed
further in chapter 3.2.2.
Data from the interviewees suggested a two to three stage interview process is
most common across employers in this sample. The use of technology in the
recruitment process has increased significantly during Covid-19. In particular,
video calls have replaced face to face interviews in many organisations.
Interviewees highlighted the benefits of using video as an employer, such as
reduced costs and increase time efficiency, but also the potential benefits for
older candidates. Long-term conditions are more prevalent in older people,
58% of over 60s compared to 14% of under 40s (Department of Health, 2012),
which could present physical and psychological barriers to attending physical
job interviews. As the generation gap in internet use closing, 83% of those aged
65 to 74 having reported recently using the internet in a 2019 survey (Office for
National Statistics, 2019), it seems that increased use of web-based recruitment
methods could be less of a barrier for some older workers. However, not all jobs
or industries may lend themselves to online interviewing, particularly those that
may require skills testing, which could disadvantage some older workers in these
jobs or industries:
“ We will absolutely keep online interviewing – it’s more efficient and
better. We used to have assessment centres [across the country] but too
expensive to travel to for some. This is no cost and greener and it makes
a big difference to the team not to have to deal with room booking issues.”
Large employer, Public sector
“ If they did do all stage one interviews online it does help more
people partake, for example if someone has caring responsibilities,
they could do the interview out of hours to be more accommodating.”
Large employer, Financial Services
2.2.1 First interview
Typically, the first interview is conducted by the hiring manager and a member
of the HR team. In public sector organisations interviewees reported that a panel
interview usually consists of two or three members, some of whom might be
selected to ensure the panel is representative:
9
The 2017 CIPD and Hays survey was conducted with 1068 UK based HR professionals from organisations
that ranged in size, and sector. Just under half of the sample was from the private sectors (48%), while 22%
were public sector organisations, 17% were in manufacturing and production, and 13% in not-for-profit.
Centre for Ageing Better 23You can also read
